However, there is a track on that album entitled Swallowed in the Sea which might very well be the worst thing that this band has ever done. Just bad. Crap on toast. I think Gwyneth must have written the lyrics to that one.

As I put it in my epinions review of X&Y, Swallowed In The Sea is an insult to heartfelt emotion.

Being a reasonably hardcore U2 fan, it felt like blasphemy of sorts to be pushing Coldplay's latest CD into my car CD player - much akin to attending a Mormon church, or driving a Proton.

However, the CD starts off well with an instrumental track, Life in Technicolor - which, the American misspelling notwithstanding, is excellent. However, the album then goes into Cemeteries in London, which, whilst being a pretty decent song, is quite possibly the worst jump/segue in any album I've heard.

A few other songs flow gently past, before coming to the excellent title track, Viva la Vida. This is, for want of a better comparison, Coldplay's Beautiful Day - an anthem that is distinctive, standout and great fun. The album then continues on with the "grower" Violet Hill, before coasting on to an end.

All in all, the album is, scarily, much like what Chris Martin himself said it to be - Coldplay's Unforgettable Fire. It is an experience that is all about sound and atmospherics, rather than pushing a point or hitting hard. The ambience and sheer brilliance of some of the instrumentation on this album are very reminiscent of the Unforgettable Fire, however Viva la Vida is let down by one thing and one thing only - Chris Martin.

His bland, slowly grating voice and equally bland lyrics are what prevent this album from being a genuine hit. If Martin were Bono, with Bono's earlier lyrical ability and voice (as he sometimes seems to wish), this album would have taken off the ground and never looked back. Instead, it wavers gently on the boundaries of greatness and mediocrity, hoping to tentatively make a foray into foreign territory.

Three out of five.

On a personal note, I quite enjoy the album, but the seguing of the songs just makes no sense at all. I tried seguing Life in Technicolor into Viva la Vida, and it was amazing. Doesn't help that those two tracks are the only ones that really stand out in the album, either.

ok, I am confused.. Maybe u can enlighten me some.. You say you don't like Coldplay but u like this album...

Not that I want to stick up for Rob, but I think it's entirely possible not to like a band, but to like an album from said band. And, he never said he likes the album. Rather, he called the acoustic version of Lost! "decent."

Not that I want to stick up for Rob, but I think it's entirely possible not to like a band, but to like an album from said band. And, he never said he likes the album. Rather, he called the acoustic version of Lost! "decent."